5 Tips for Parents of a Child with ADHD

If you're the parent of a child with ADHD, you know this condition can make life difficult at times. Depending on the severity of your case, some of your daily challenges may seem overwhelming, even insurmountable. Fortunately for parents, there are a lot of things you can do for your child to help keep symptoms in check and even reduce the severity of this condition. The earlier you find and address the issues of ADHD, and the more consistent you are with your chosen treatment methods, the happier and more successful your child will be.

The need for additional help

In general, children who have ADD or ADHD have limited executive function. This means they may have difficulty planning ahead, controlling impulses, and staying organized enough to complete schoolwork or certain tasks. These kids will need additional help and guidance from parents and teachers, while they are learning to develop the skills to think ahead. When you give your child instructions, what you've said may not register with them. They might be distracted easily from what you've asked them to do. They tend to interrupt conversations and make untimely demands, or say things without tact. Many ADHD kids have trouble getting a restful night's sleep, and although tired, still be hyperactive during the day.

It isn't conscious behavior

One important thing to remember is that even when your child ignores, annoys, or exasperates you, they aren't doing so consciously. They want to behave, complete tasks, and please their parents and teachers; they just don't know how to go about it. So as a parent, try not to take their negative behavior or attitude personally.

What can you do as a parent?

To help your child be as calm, organized, and productive as possible, there are several things you can do. As you implement the following ideas, you may notice that your entire family functions better as they live with ADHD.

1. Remember your child takes cues from you.

If you can stay calm in dealing with your child, your demeanor can rub off on them. Arguing is counterproductive, making both the child and parent even more frustrated. Try to diffuse your child's anger. Prefacing what you need to say with an understanding statement such as, “I understand this homework is hard,” can make all the difference before setting a logical expectation.

2. Encourage structure & autonomy

Remember, the more things you do for your child, the less he or she will do for themselves. Understand their limitations, but make sure they are doing everything they can reasonably do for himself or herself in homework, social settings, and daily life. Using planners or charts along with set rules and regular routines will help take the guesswork out of day-to-day tasks. This predictability can help your child (and you) feel more at ease. If your child knows what the procedure is, he or she is more likely to take care of things with less prodding from you.

3. Keep discipline reasonable

When any child breaks a rule, consistent consequences are key to improving future behavior. In this way, children with ADHD are no different. Consider the appropriateness of those consequences. Try asking your child what their consequences should be when they break certain rules. This helps them take ownership of the results of their behavior. Also, never underestimate the importance of rewarding your child when they behave well.

4. Allow choices

Nobody likes to be instructed for every little thing. Allowing your child to make some non-vital choices for themselves is a great way to teach self-control. Try offering a couple of different choices, neither of which could have drastic consequences. Let them choose what to wear, which homework assignment to do first, or which household chore to start with. Making smaller choices now is great practice for more vital choices they will have to make later in life.

5. Keep trying

Just as you expect your child to keep trying if they don't succeed with something at first, you need to be persistent in helping your child with ADHD succeed. Many methods of treatment and behavior modification require repeated attempts before they're successful, so keep at it. Overall, be sure you educate yourself, so you can help your child deal with his condition as painlessly as possible. Focus on the things your child does well, praise him or her for rules obeyed and jobs well done. And when things get difficult, don't beat yourself up. Not every technique is going to work for your child, but trial and error is sometimes the only way to figure things out. Consult your child's physician and other professional help whenever needed. The more involved you are in your child's treatment process, the better the results will be.

Tyler Clark